


State of Grace

by alphaesque



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: F/M, Future Fic, Kid Fic, M/M, lost of friendship feels going on
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-09
Updated: 2013-06-09
Packaged: 2017-12-14 09:51:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/835563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alphaesque/pseuds/alphaesque
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It’s been ten years since Allison Argent last stepped foot in Beacon Hills.</p><p>(Technically it’s been ten years, two days and- give or take- nine hours. But that’s neither here nor there.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	State of Grace

It’s been ten years since Allison Argent last stepped foot in Beacon Hills.

(Technically it’s been ten years, two days and- give or take- nine hours. But that’s neither here nor there.)

The town looks relatively the same. There’s a new traffic light, a bigger grocery store, the bank has moved over to where the old courthouse used to be leaving an eye clinic in it’s place and the Subway has been replaced by a Jimmy Johns (Allison makes a mental note as she drives by to get their phone number from the internet.)

It’s not as if she had expected the town to freeze itself once she left- as if it could be frozen in time by the click of a Polaroid camera- so the twinges in her stomach are not only unwelcome but are also unexpected and has her going just a little bit faster out of the main square.

Driving past old brick homes and new renovations, Allison commits as much as she can to memory. Some roads are paved over now, some are still dirt and dust. There are broken mailboxes, tire swings and a park that’s littered with children who’ve been let out for the day.

The trees are in full bloom, reds and pinks color the vibrant landscape, a stark difference from when Allison left ten years ago surrounded by brittle leaves and barren trees.

It shouldn’t be as easy as it is to drive down a street she knows oh too well and park in front of a house she spent quite some time in. Flashbacks of a time where she was younger, maybe not happier but a hell of a lot more optimistic, come in waves and she lets herself remember- even just for a moment.

There are three cars and a motorcycle in the drive; one of the cars, a sleek black thing made of pure muscle, is one she more than recognizes and the pang of remembrance hits somewhere deep in her chest.

Frowning, she tucks her hair behind her ear and glances away from the car; she hadn’t been expecting the nostalgia, not this time at least.

Taking a few moments to collect herself, she checks her mirror for any stray hairs or smudges in her lipstick. There are laugh lines that tease at the corners of her eyes and a downwards curve to her lips that comes with her line of work; funny how age can change you both inside and out.

Stepping out she takes a moment to scan the neighborhood before lingering on the house. The front is different now; the old, out-of-place, squat palm tree has been replaced by a bed of spring flowers and large bushes. Red bricks line the flowerbed and stepping stones lead up to the sidewalk leading up to the house. Following the steps she can see little footprints in white paint decorating the surface and she smiles involuntarily.

The door opens before she can lift a hand to knock and for a moment there’s silence before Derek blinks slowly, “Allison.”

“Derek.” She waits until his synapses start firing again before brushing past him, pausing only when his hand comes down on her shoulder and squeezes in greeting.

“Welcome back,” his tone is light but there’s something in his eyes that reminds her of heated touches and barbed words. There was a time when all she wanted to do was rip his grin from his face and swallow his pride whole. Now she smiles back at him and squeezes his hand, a light warmth shared by two people who have found better ways to stitch together their open wounds.

“Thanks-“

“Aunt Allison!” a blur of dark hair and wide eyes skits around the corner and firmly attaches itself to Allison’s legs, squeezing tight enough to make Allison’s legs shake and wobble from the force of it. “You’re here!”

Allison takes the young girl into her arms, spinning and twirling until the hallway is filled with laughter. “I hope I’m not late.”

The girl pouts and crosses her small arms, “Daddy says the tea party has to be tomorrow 'cause you’re gonna be tired.”

“Well,” Allison gives the little girl an eskimo kiss before leaving a smacking kiss of smudged lipstick her cheek, “I _am_ tired. It is a very long drive and,” she drops her voice down until it’s a soft whisper, “my butt hurts from all the sitting.”

Derek snorts from the end of the hallway and the little girl giggles loudly, hands coming up to cover her mouth in shared embarrassment.

“Alyssa what did I say about-” Danny pauses mid-sentence before grinning and striding fully into the hallway once his eyes flicker up from the Barbie in hand to Allison herself, arms spreading to pull her into a bear hug. “I didn’t hear you pull up.”

“Quiet motor,” Allison explains, one hand coming up to wrap around Danny’s bicep and squeeze in some sort of makeshift hug since her arms are still filled with his little girl. “Derek let me in.”

“Did he?” Danny and Derek share a look but Derek doesn’t back down, instead he makes a growling sound and takes Alyssa from Allison’s hold, tossing her over his shoulder as she screams in delight. “You’d think this was his house now wouldn’t you?”

Apparently Derek says something low enough for Danny to catch because he chuckles and rolls his eyes in feigned annoyance.

“You look…”

“Like shit?”

Danny loops his arm around Allison’s shoulder and pulls her close, chest vibrating with laughter, “More or less, yeah. I thought you’d be all tan skin and sun streaked hair by now.”

Allison turns to look up at him, eyebrows expressively raised, “Did you?”

“Nah, not really. But that’s what the commercials tell me and I’ve heard that the TV never lies.” Danny chuckles, ducking her half-hearted blow to his ribcage and shoves her towards the living room just as Alyssa slides past him in her lime green socks, dark eyes sparked with mischief and flashing with liquid gold. “Come on, munchkin, it’s bath time.”

“But-“

“No buts!” Alyssa giggles when Danny blows on her stomach and distracts her long enough to cart her down yet another hallway.

“Hey! You’re here!” Before Allison can turn fully around Scott’s arms are around her and she relaxes against his warmth, face pressing into the familiar curve of his neck.

They stay there for a while, his arms wrapped protectively around her waist, her face buried against smooth skin that still smells like the woods and his dark cologne. He kisses the side of her head, arms tightening as he conveys his happiness over her return and she returns the sentiment, whispering an ‘I missed you too’ against his neck.

After a long while of subtle checking of one another’s persons, they pull back and Scott presses a kiss to her forehead, lips curving into a goofy grin. “It’s good to have you home, Allison.”

“Hey Allison’s here!” Isaac lifts his head up from the couch in time to be knocked off of it by Boyd, who grins and waves in her direction, wedding ring glinting in the afternoon sunlight.

“Thanks for that, Sherlock.” Boyd kicks at Isaac, who wraps his fingers quickly around his ankle and pulls just enough to slide the bigger man down the couch.

Allison bites back a laugh and steps fully into the room, taking in the sight of folders and papers spred across the coffee table, red marks and diagrams hastily scribbled across the pages. A few of the binders she knows, after all she was the one who had supplied them with the neatly drawn information, organized into concise notes detailing every dark, dirty secret of the unruly northern pack that tried their best to cause a problem in Beacon Hills only a few short weeks ago.

Despite the havoc that was their meeting area the room looked even bigger than it had through her grainy computer webcam; the living room spread out into a small sitting area where Derek sits, feet propped up on a table while he reads an unmarked folder. The colors are warm, welcoming, and Allison can’t help but smile and feel at home; feel safe and relaxed and _secure_.

Meeting Scott’s gaze, she relaxes even more and lets his easy comfort flood her systems when he offers her a lopsided smile in response,”So what do you think?”

“I think it’s much better than that shitty one bedroom apartment you two shared after college while you were in vet school that’s for sure.”

“Hey!” he socks her gently in the arm and cuffs Isaac on the back of the head as he cackles loudly from his position on the floor. “It got the job done and it was really cheap too!”

“It smelled like foot fungus and moldy cheese. The only upside was the fact that we were down the street from a Burger King and a 24/7 Quickie Mart.” Boyd shrugs a shoulder at Scott’s gaping expression, eyebrow cocked in an look that reminds Allison too much of Lydia.

Speaking of…”Where’s Lydia? The plan was that she was supposed to meet me here.”

Boyd flicks a glance to his watch and then checks his phone like the dutiful husband he is, “Avana had ice skating practice. I offered to pick her up but,” he shrugs yet again, only this one is accompanied by an impish grin.

Allison chuckles and sits down the empty arm chair across from the side table, where Isaac is still laying, arms spread out, legs wide open, face pressed against the rug. “Isaac?”

“Tired.”

“That’s what happens when you have a newborn at home,” Derek comments airily from the other side of the room, eyes still trained on the document in hand.

Isaac flips him the bird, groaning loudly when Scott nudges him to the side so that he can get past, scooping up papers and shoving them to the side. “Scott, buddy, old pal, my man, best bud, alpha bro, I’m trying to catch some shut eye here so can you not?”

“There’s a spare bedroom for that, Isaac- which you already use when you’re hiding from Cora. Right now you’re in the middle of my floor and I need to pick up the rest of these papers before Lydia gets here and gets really mad at me for messing up her system.”

Boyd shoots Allison a look over Scott’s shoulder that says something along the lines of “he totally messed up her system” while also conveying the fact that “she’ll royally fuck his shit up- alpha or not”.

The front door opens and closes and all four males turn to look at the mouth of the hallway just as a little girl with dark curls barrels into the room and launches herself at Isaac. “Pony ride!”

“Pony is sleeping right now, maybe later, okay?”

Avana stares down at Isaac with a flat expression, features schooled into a hard mask that leaves no doubt of who her mother is. “ _Isaac_.”

Feeling generous enough, Allison decides to save Isaac from the wrath of Lydia’s offspring and clears her throat loudly enough to catch Avana’s attention.

“AUNT ALLISON!” It’s a screech followed by a tackle; small arms wrap around Allison in a vice grip, legs curling around her sides so that she’s completely surrounded by her goddaughter.

“Hi Avie,” pressing kisses all over her face, Allison squeezes her back just as tight and fights the tears stinging at her eyes. It’s been far too long since she’s been able to hold her goddaughter like this. To see her in the flesh with her mother’s piercing eyes and the slight hint of her father’s height peaking through. “I missed you so much.”

“I missed you tons.” Avana makes a displeased noise when another smaller body climbs into the chair sending elbows flying as the two struggle for claim over Allison.

“Hi, Aunt Allison!”

Allison blinks twice, shocked to see her godson staring back at her with deep eyes and narrow features. She had seen him only a few short months ago and his babyfat had still rounded at his face and showed off his adorable dimples. “Oh, Flynn. Look how handsome you are.”

He shys away at her comment but lets her frame his face, peppering him with the same amount of kisses she had given Avana. “Thank you.” His voice is quiet and the tips of his ears flush, “You look nice too.”

Allison laughs and tugs at his ear, “Did your mom tell you to say that?”

Lydia snorts from where she’s draped across Boyd, arms wrapped around his shoulders, comfortably sitting his lap looking unfairly put together for someone who has two kids, a dog, a chinchilla, a husband and also runs a multimillion dollar company alongside Danny. “We have one rule in the house: tell the truth.”

Allison sticks her tongue out at Lydia, earning two appreciative ‘oohs’ from her godchildren.

“Don’t forget we have that conference call in ten minutes,” Derek looks pointedly at Boyd and Isaac, and then over to where Scott is flipping through a few other files, eyebrows drawn together in thought.

“Yeah, yeah, we know Derek. We’re not kids anymore.” Boyd rubs circles over Lydia’s hip and hums when she idly rakes her nails up and down his forearms.

“It’s my job as your alpha-“

“That’s co-alpha,” Scott interjets, eyes slicing over to Derek, expression unamused.

Derek shoots him a wolfish grin in response, pleased to garner a reaction out of him and then turns back to Boyd, “as I was saying, it’s my job as your co-alpha to remind you of these things, least you forget.”

“Like you can talk,” Isaac lifts his head up and Allison hides her wince at the severity of his dark circles. Not all newborns are angels like her godchildren were unfortunately. “Remember that one time where-“

Derek tosses a binder across the room, pegging Isaac in the leg before he can retell one of Derek’s impressive flop alpha stories and Boyd sniggers loudly at the look of pure indignation on Derek’s face.

Scott looks from his watch over to the kitchen and then slides his attention over to Allison, “Hey Allison, I know you just got here but do you mind dropping dinner off to my mom? She’s helping out with the nightshift since they’re short staffed today,” he then gestures to the folders in hand and then over to Derek, “and I’d go- or Danny would- but we have the call in a few minutes, so…”

Allison gives both kids a squeeze, blowing rasberries on their necks before untangling herself from their tiny grasps. “It’s not a problem, Scott.” Patting his cheek she heads into the kitchen and takes out the carryout container that still held some of the warmth from the microwave. ‘Mom’ is written in Danny’s neat scrawl and Allison shakes her head at how sickeningly domestic it all is. “I have to make my own stop on the way.” It’s two weeks since the anniversary of Kate’s death and just about time to replace the wilting flowers next to her grave; she’ll pick up another bouquet for her mom’s too, just in case.

She leaves just as Alyssa and Danny’s voice fill the living room and the sound of children laughing and running off to play makes her smile sadly.

She had always planned to have kids by now- three or four so that they would all have siblings and someone to play with as they grew up, something she had always wished for.

Lydia appears just as Allison reaches for the doorknob and wraps her arms tightly around her waist. Lydia who presses her face into Allison’s neck and whispers words of comfort and understanding, Lydia who hugs tightly and always just knows when something is wrong.

Promises of girltalk and wine are whispered as they stand, cheek to cheek, hands intertwined. Eventually Allison pulls back, gesturing to the rapidly cooling dinner in her hand and Lydia laughs tearily and gives her a noisy kiss before shooing her out the door.

The ride to the hospital is quick and easy, unfortunately Melissa is with a patient and the sun has already started to set, leaving her with limited time left so Allison leaves her with a note promising to catch up later and heads to the cemetery before it gets too dark.

Flowers do nothing more than make their graves stand out and Allison lets her vulnerable skin shed as she cries and traces the name Argent on their graves, hollowing herself out, armoring herself back up.

The cold steel of Kate’s blade is a constant kiss against Allison’s skin, the only piece of Kate she has left, the only weapon she truly cherishes. It sits tucked in to the back of Allison’s pants, pressed up against the dip of her back, ready at a moment’s notice.

There’s another knife in her boot, a gun at her ankle and two wolfsbane darts concealed away on her person. She knows that her mother would be proud of her standing there armed to the teeth; a warrior queen on a throne she built herself out of thorns and steel.

Pressing a kiss to her fingers she lingers them upon their graves before departing, leaving the whispers of the women before her behind in the damp ground.

Driving home she barely notices the lights flashing behind her until a siren wails in warning. Pulling over she digs for her license and registration and wonders just how much over the speed limit she had been going.

It’s dark enough that the officer makes it to her window without her even noticing his presence until his knuckles rap against her window, causing her to jump infinitesimally.

Allison rolls down her window and it takes a moment for her eyes to adjust from the darkness to the bright light of the flashlight he’s holding. “Evening officer.”

“Do you know why I pulled you over?”

“No.”

“I pulled you over because it’s a crime for someone to be as beautiful as you. So, unfortunately, I’m going to have to handcuff you and take you back to my place for further questioning.”

Allison bites back a smile and leans forward, “Is that so?”

“It’s my sole duty in life to abide by the letter of the law…So, yes.”

“If this is how you pick up chicks you’re going to need a lot more help.” She raises a sole eyebrow cockily, lips pursing into a pout.

“Hey, I’ll have you know I don’t just pick up any chicks with that line.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah, I’ve been saving it for this one special chick who finally has returned back after ten- very, _very_ long- years because she’s realized it’s not the pace that makes a home but the people in it.”

“And you think I’m that girl, Stilinski?”

Stiles grins and ducks his head into her car, lips hovering just a breath away from her own. “I _know_ you’re that girl, Argent.” He kisses her slowly, hand sneaking in to cup at her face and rub against her skin, “Welcome home.”

“Yeah,” Allison leans in for another kiss; stomach flipping at the familiar taste of coffee and peppermint, heart pounding in her chest as the warmth intoxicates her and has her head spinning from the sheer joy of it all, “it is.”


End file.
